On Monday morning an Amtrak train derailed off its tracks in Washington state, resulting in multiple deaths being reported. In response, Donald Trump used the opportunity to promote his plan for infrastructure investment.

Trump on Amtrak

During a routine day in DuPont, Washington, Amtrak train 501 was moving along the city when a tragedy took place as at least seven of the cars derailed from the tracks. The train was part of a new service that just launched on Monday morning, with the train carrying close to 80 passengers at the time it derailed.

According to CBS News, multiple fatalities have been reported, with many others left injured, with first responders treating the situation as a "mass causality incident." Not long after the news broke, Donald Trump decided to give his thoughts during a pair of tweets, and later during a speech in Washington, DC, on December 18.

Taking to Twitter on Monday afternoon, Donald Trump sent out two tweets that were much different in tone.

One was a traditional message giving "thoughts and prayers" to those involved, with another post putting the focus on his plan for infrastructure spending. "The train accident that just occurred in DuPont, WA shows more than ever why our soon to be submitted infrastructure plan must be approved quickly," Trump tweeted. "Seven trillion dollars spent in the Middle East while our roads, bridges, tunnels, railways (and more) crumble!" he wrong, before adding, "Not for long!"

In a follow-up post, Donald Trump appeared to rollback his aggressive tone by tweeting a more relaxed response.

"My thoughts and prayers are with everyone involved in the train accident in DuPont, Washington," he wrote, before thanking those who rushed to the scene to offer their assistance. Just minutes later while giving a speech on national security, Trump appeared on camera to double down on his thoughts and to push for infrastructure investment.

Instant backlash

Not long after Donald Trump sent out his tweets about the Amtrak crash, critics of the president fired back. "They don’t even know what the cause was, and the railroads were BRAND NEW. So stop making this about the Middle East," one tweet read.

"Such class.

I'll use an tragedy to further my political agenda. I have no shame," another tweet noted. "And not a word of commiseration to all those who have lost their lives. Shame on you," a follow-up tweet stated.

"Lovely idea. How are you going to pay for it when your tax scam increases the deficit by over a trillion dollars?" one Twitter user wondered. "Congratulations on using a tragic accident to your advantage only hours after it happened," an additional tweet wrote.
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED